Unedited Chapter
In January, the ìpolar vortexî hit North America breaking coldest temperature records throughout the United States. Colorado began the legal sale of marijuana.
I read several AT books over the winter, one a fictional account of a reluctant hiker who hiked the trail against his will.
In December and January I made a full court press and got my book published. Being an optimist, I ordered 100 copies and signed up for print on demand distribution which gave me access to Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I felt like a real author and got business cards printed up.
In February, my son Ben, his wife Michelle, and their now two year old son John, made a three week trip to China to meet their newly adopted son, Daniel Robert Heller, formerly Ma Pei Dong. Danielís adoption took over a year of planning and paperwork. Daniel was born with a cleft lip and pallet, was left at a hospital soon after his birth and spent the first sixteen months of his life in an orphanage where he was well cared for.
The three week trip started in Beijing where they visited the Great Wall and Tiananmen Square and met with other adopting families and their adoption agency hosts. In a few days they traveled to Zhengzhou in the province of Henan where they met and secured Daniel. Two weeks of paperwork (Chinese and United States) followed while the family got acquainted. They flew home via Hong Kong.
Once at home, Daniel had a series of evaluations and medical procedures at The Childrenís Hospital of Philadelphia. Ten months later as I am writing this after Danielís first Christmas, it seems like Daniel has always been with us. He is doing very well, physically and emotionally, and has integrated extremely well with his family.
Over the winter, my then 94 year old father, seemed to lose his strength over a period of months and passed away on April 24, 2014. He was in the hospital for a short period and in and out of nursing care when my mother (92) was just not able to care for him as she wanted to. He got to meet Daniel before he passed. On March 29, Mother and Dad celebrated their April 1st anniversary (seventy (70) years) at a party attended by both of their two children, all five grandchildren and all eight great grandchildren. Dad was well enough to engage all in conversation.
Harry Heller Jr. grew up in Trevose, PA, near Philadelphia. A high school teacher, who spoke of taking trips aboard cargo ships, gave him an interest in the sea and at 16 he got a summer job on an oil tanker. College was interrupted by WW II and then family. He served in the Navy and then got an officerís commission in the Merchant Marine. He survived two lost ships, one broke in half in rough seas off Nova Scotia and one was torpedoed near the Bahamas. He met my mother on the Cape May, New Jersey boardwalk while stationed there.
Soon after his family came along, he went back to sea as a Merchant Marine Officer on board oil tankers with Atlantic Richfield Oil Company where he spent most of his working years. He traveled the world and could not be beat in a geography quiz. As with many in the ìgreatest generationî, he lived an understated life for what he had done and accomplished.
Over the winter, my focus was on hiking the Great Smoky Mountains. I had developed an aggressive plan for doing it in day hikes. Some thought it was crazy. There were two thirty plus mile sections with no road crossings. I figured out a plan to access the trail using side trails to split the sections, but the side trails were long, adding miles and still involved ultra long days. I tried to recruit friends from the July 2013 AT Conference. Some initially showed interest but in the end they just thought I was nuts and politely bailed out. My friend John from Raleigh was a gamer, so we developed a plan for May to begin our attack of the Smoky Mountains.
The VA scandal broke out. Many Veterans were delayed treatment due to waiting list manipulation at some VA hospitals.
On May 11 after recovering from tax season, I headed south. The drives were getting long. I stayed over in Johnson City, Tennessee and the next day continued on Interstate 81 to Interstate 40 to exit 407 and Tennessee 66. I was somewhat surprised to see the widespread tourist area all the way from the Interstate through Pigeon Forge to Gatlinburg. I drove over to Cades Cove in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. John and I were planning to start our hike there the next morning and I wanted to make sure I knew where the trailhead was. After finding the trailhead at the end of the picnic area, I drove over to the Cades Cove Ranger Station. I met a ranger about my age who said that he had done our planned hike of the next day ìmanyî years (and pounds) ago. John and I were planning to hike from Cades Cove to Fontana Dam a total of 21.2 miles. The ranger said it was tough to do.
It was late morning now and I knew it would be a two hour drive over to the Fontana Dam and the Fontana Village Resort where John and I would be staying the next few days. I was advised by area shuttle drivers that the drive would be that long. I was not sure why since it was only sixty miles. I would learn why. It was sixty miles to shuttle a twenty one mile hike. One had to drive around the Great Smoky Mountains. I headed back Laurel Creek Road to US 321 to pick up the Foothills Parkway. There were nice views at look out areas along the Parkway looking southeast into the Smoky Mountains.
At the Little Tennessee River at Chilhowee Lake, US 321 Intersects with US 129 and I headed toward Fontana Dam. I had been told about a curving road that would be slow driving, but I did not know of the significance of ìTail of the Dragon.î For eleven miles northwest of Deals Gap, the road has 318 hairpin curves and is considered the number one motorcycle and sports car road. As soon as I was on the section, a group of sports cars appeared in my rear view mirror. I quickly pulled over to let them pass and they gave me a polite wave. I would pull over often, not wanting to deprive the enthusiasts of the experience. The road had three or more photographers taking pictures of the drivers. As you can imagine the police were patrolling for those who got carried away.
I reached the motel in Deals Gap and got gas. There were a few hundred motor cycle riders at the motel and general store there. I headed over to Fontana Village and at the entrance noted a young guy hitching a ride back to the trail. He was Pyro from New Jersey and I gave him a ride to the Fontana Hilton (shelter) where he would be staying the night. He was a pleasant young guy and John and I would meet him a few more times over the week.
I checked into the Fontana Village Resort at the Lodge and got the keys to the 2 BR cabin John and I had reserved. John would arrive a few hours later and we headed over to Fontana Dam to drop my car there. We toured the visitor area which John particularly found interesting. John is always learning which is why he is so smart. We drove over to the Fontana Village Marina which was interesting as well.
After dinner in the lodge and a stop at the general store for provisions for the next day, John and I headed back to the cabin to rest for the next day.
We rose at 4:30AM the next morning and were on the road at 5AM headed to Cades Cove. Johnís car was showing low pressure on the left rear tire. We got air before we left the village and began our drive of Tail of the Dragon. John and his BMW handled it well considering the darkness. We got air again in Townsend along with a cup of coffee. We reached the trailhead at Cades Cove at 7AM.
We started up the Anthony Creek Trail. The first mile was easy on a gravel path. Then it got a little tougher with a significant grade on loose annoying rocks. I was carrying a larger than normal pack and a lot of water, a water filter pump and Steri pen and enough food for three days. I was feeling it and started to get winded. I was in decent shape, but with my Dadís illness and passing, I had not trained as hard over the winter. Even though I had lost 10 pounds over tax season, I had gained it back over the last month. I drank a lot of water which did not seem to help. All these thoughts were going through my mind as I struggled up the hill gasping for breath. I was beginning to have doubts. John was solid.
After 3.5 miles on the Laurel Creek Trail, we reached the Bote Mountain Trail but still had another 1.7 miles up to the AT on the ridge. I continued to struggle. We did not reach the AT until 10:30 what I considered almost an hour behind a 2 mph pace I had planned for. I did not know the elevation gain that we would have up from Cades Cove, but now know it was over 3000 feet in those five miles. I had underestimated the climb up and was probably dehydrated having only drunk some lousy instant coffee that morning.
We started along the AT on the Ridge and fortunately we were mostly downhill over three miles to the Russell Field Shelter. I seemed to be OK on the downs. There were quite a few hikers at the Russell Field Shelter. I had been seriously thinking about bailing on the hike. I knew there was another side trail to Cades Cove from Russell Field. John was encouraging and did not want to quit. We decided to continue on. I was not sure about the decision as we started to go up hill over the next three miles to Mollies Ridge and the shelter there. I was still not feeling that great.
At the Shelter we planned to get water. It was after 2PM but at this point we were past the point of no return. We hiked down to the water source to fill our empty bottles. I could not get a green light on the Steri Pen, now knowing that the Steri Pen does not work on soft sided bottles. We decided to use that water only in an emergency if we otherwise ran out. I left my filter and steri pen at the shelter by mistake. Oops. At the shelter we met Barry and Erin from South Carolina.
Erin and Barry seemed to be in their late fifties or early sixties. Erin was on a thru hike and her husband Barry was meeting up with her when he could in between consulting engagements. Erin and Barry had left Clingmans Dome two days earlier so had already spent two nights on the trail. Erin was into ultra light hiking but was somewhat slow. Barry by plan was about to go on ahead to Fontana Dam today since he had some business matter to attend to. Erin would stay out another night and get to Fontana Dam the next day. John and I would leap frog with Barry the rest of the day. We did not see Erin again.
It was a nice pleasant clear day. It was not too hot and visibility was good, but on this section, there were almost no views after Spence Field. The trail down to Fontana Dam was buried in the trees.
On the way down from Mollies Ridge we met Pyro and his friend Wonka. They had gotten a late start that morning and had been climbing most of the day from Fontana Dam. They reported seeing bear on the way up. We also met an older thru hiker, ì4 æî. It became apparent how he got his name when he held up his hand. The tip of his ring finger was missing. I took a spill with a soft landing after tripping on a rock.
Barry passed us as we rested on the climb to Doe Knob. I was feeling better now than I had all day. I was sucking down Emergen-C and continued to eat even though I was not that hungry. We still had 8 miles to go and it almost 4:30PM. Fortunately once we reached Doe Knob the major climbing for the day was done, although a few surprise bumps showed up that were not apparent from the elevation profiles.
At Doe Knob, the trail leaves the ridge crest which separates Tennessee and North Carolina and heads due south into North Carolina toward Fontana Dam. John and I could smell the finish and started to make good time on the downhill on the easy graded trail toward Shuckstack Mountain. At the side trail to the fire tower Barry was there on the phone trying to make arrangements for a shuttle yet this evening back to Clingmans Dome. It would not happen and he would miss his business appointment the next morning.
I always assumed that we would go to the Shuckstack Fire Tower and even though it was only a few tenths, it was uphill and neither John nor I felt the need. The Shuckstack Fire tower is clearly visible from Fontana Dam. We had four miles to go to the Dam. We raced down the mountain trying to beat the falling darkness and popped out of the woods just as darkness fell about 8:30. It had taken us 13 Ω hours to hike the 21.2 miles. We had made it and took a leisurely stroll across the Dam to my car. My cooler was well stocked.
We had promised to wait for Barry to give him a ride. He arrived twenty minutes later and thought that we had abandoned him when he arrived at the parking lot on the north side of the dam and we were not there. Barry had made arrangements for a shuttle with Nancy at the Hike Inn so we drove him over there but she was out of rooms expecting a large group yet that evening. Barry decided to stay at Fontana Village so we drove back over there. Nancy would pick him up the next morning. We would not see Barry again.
It was after 10PM when John and I collapsed in our cabin. There was no dinner for us as all the restaurants were closed up tight.
The next day, we had planned for an off day for John and me. I decided that all my friends from the AT conference who had bailed on this hike were right. It was not a hike for a group. After a leisurely breakfast at the Lodge we started to pack up. At the Lodge we met some thru hikers sitting on the porch including Robert Redford, Sour Patch, Vito and Smoky. Robert Redford was a fair skinned reddish hair young girl. She had gotten the name from someone, but she was so young, I am not sure she knew who Robert Redford was. The group had hiked 166 miles from Springer Mountain and was getting ready to begin their assault of the Smoky Mountains. For various reasons, they individually had gotten a later start (late April) for a thru hike. Most thru hikers leave Springer in March or early April. This group would have trouble getting to Katadin by October. Only one in four who starts a thru hike completes it in the same year.
John and I would get some more supplies for our Thursday hike and then began our drive to Pigeon Forge where we planned to stay the next few days. At the general store, we met Charles from Florida who I had hiked with several days at the conference in July of 2013. He was dressed in black. Charles was hiking the Benton McKay trail this year. Charles remembered that I had written a book and seemed interested to learn of its publishing.
On our way to Pigeon Forge, I would be on Tail of the Dragon for the third time. The police were out in force. We stopped at Cades Cove to check on the tire on Johnís car. We were successful in getting it repaired at a garage in Townsend. People in the south are very friendly and helpful. I donít think we would have had the same type of success in NJ or NY. We took Johnís car back to Cades Cove and headed to our Super 8. For dinner that evening, we chose the most touristy restaurant in town. The strip in Pigeon Forge is a hub of activity.
After a really early morning breakfast (we were the only ones up in town) we headed off to Newfound Gap and arrived at the Clingmans Dome parking area by 7AM. It was a rainy and drizzly morning, not what we were hoping for. We had a 22 mile day planned. I put on a wind shirt and never took it off. There was a slight chill in the air. It was damp all day and socked in with fog. There were some views on this section unlike Tuesday, but today the fog foiled most of the viewpoints.
The half mile hike from the parking area to Clingmans Dome and its tower is a steep half mile. There are benches for rest along the paved trail. I wondered how many heart attacks happened on the way up each year. When we reached the tower it was socked in with fog, so there was no point to climbing up. We had done that the previous year when we hiked from Newfound Gap up to Clingmans Dome.
Our hike this day would be 16.4 miles south on the AT to the Bote Mountain Trail(1.7 miles) and then 3.5 miles on the Laurel Creek Trail. With the half mile up from the parking lot to Clingmans Dome, the hike would be 22.1 miles. We would start at an elevation of 6,643 feet, the highest point on the AT and finish at about 1,400 feet at Cades Cove, descending about a mile. There were a few bumps along the way, but not any significant climbs except for 1,000 feet over a few miles up to Thunderhead. Generally the hike would be easier than Tuesdayís 21 mile adventure since we would be going down the side trails to Cades Cove and not up.
Soon after starting we encountered Pyro and Wonka again. All the thru hikers we met along the way looked like drowned rats. It was damp and chilly. We arrived at the Double Spring Gap Shelter. The was a lot of talk about bear activity and I heard later that some of the shelters in The Great Smoky Mountain National Park were closed at times due to bears. We never saw any.
The good views at Jenkins Knob and Silerís Bald were not to be had with the fog. It rained off and on and in the open areas was quite chilly. I was doing much better today than two days earlier when I was not feeling well. There was an incentive to keep moving because when we stopped, we got cold. We did stop to eat, but arose quickly and kept going. We were not drinking much water so really did not need to acquire any today. It was a good thing since I had left my filter and steri pen at a shelter two days earlier.
More thru hikers were huddled at the Derrick Knob Shelter and more bear talk. We stopped but only briefly and continued up now to Thunderhead. Thunderhead was a small pile of rocks with a small medallion that said it was 5,527 feet. A half a mile further was Rocky Top. On a nice day we might have seen Fontana Lake, but it was not to be. We could smell the finish line only 1.2 miles away. The trail passed through open areas. There was standing water everywhere.
I started to celebrate when we got to the junction of the Bote Mountain Trail, but John cautioned that we still had five miles to go, almost º of our hike. Party pooper. I guess he was right, but I was figuring we had hiked the southern 40 miles of the Smoky Mountains and no one could take that away from us.
The hike down the side trails seemed long and the loose rocks were annoying. We forced ourselves to stop and rest a few times. It is always good to get off your feet for at least 15 minutes every two hours or so. At the end of a bridge, I slipped on a wet rock and went down hard. All body parts were still working, but I would feel it the next day. We arrived at Cades Cove and Johnís car about 7:30. We had a few warm clothes to put on and could get out of our muddy boots. We had ice cream for dinner and crashed at the Super 8 around 10PM.
John was heading for home the next morning. I had thought about hiking that day, but was just too exhausted. After breakfast at a pancake house (there are plenty in Pigeon Forge), John packed up and we drove his car up to the Clingmans Dome Parking Lot. It was very cold and there was ice on my car. It was sunny at Newfound Gap and the Clingmans Dome parking lot so we decided to make another attempt to see the view from the tower at Clingmans Dome. Without packs, the Ω mile steep climb did not seem so bad. There was ice on all the trees from the overnight freezing rain. The fog appeared on the climb up and by the time we got to the tower, there was no visibility. We were foiled again.
John and I said our goodbyes until our planned hike in the fall. We decided that we would do the first 50 AT miles including Springer Mountain in October.
I was looking to see if any thru hikers needed a ride from Newfound Gap down to Gatlinburg. I found one mid forties young woman, Missy. I had actually noticed her at Fontana Village on Monday and saw her Thursday while hiking. She was one of those drowned rats. She had stayed the previous night at the Mt Collins Shelter and had hiked the 4 Ω miles to Newfound Gap this morning. She said she nearly froze to death in the shelter the previous night and was headed to the outfitter in Gatlinburg to get some warm clothing. She seemed to be in one of those transition stages in life. She did not say, but it I guessed that she was recently divorced from her Nantucket husband. Her grown children thought she was crazy to give up work and seek adventure on the AT. She had done 207 miles so far. She had lived at various times in other New England states.
I did not know where the outfitter was and dropped her where she asked at the wrong end of town.
I had been thinking a lot about the remaining part of the Smoky Mountains. From Newfound Gap to Davenport Gap was 31.3 miles. There were no road crossings. There was a side trail (Low Gap) of 2.9 miles from the Cosby Campground on the Tennessee side of the mountain, but that was 24 miles from Newfound Gap. That would make a hike of 26.9 miles. Having just done two 22 mile hikes that stretched my limits, I was not sure about almost 27 miles.
I decided I would inquire at the NOC, (Nantahala Outdoor Center) about a guide to hike with on that section just to inquire about it. The NOC was the first store in town when you come off the mountain from Newfound Gap. It was a big beautiful place. The staff there referred me to a local guide service called ìA Walk in the Woods.î ìA Walk in the Woodsî was listed in the ATC website as someone who provided AT shuttles. OK, that was two references. I decided I would contact them when I got home. I thought I would come down in June.
There still then remained another 7.3 miles from the Low Gap trailhead to Davenport Gap. I decided I would try to do it the next day, Saturday, but first I headed back to the Super 8 for a needed nap. I was exhausted. I woke up in the middle of the afternoon and started to call shuttle drivers with not much luck. I am not sure why I did not call ìA Walk in the Woodsî.
When I was at dinner, Maria from the Standing Bear Farm Hiker Hostel near I40 called and said her husband Curt could shuttle me the next morning. They would pick me up at 9AM at Davenport Gap and shuttle me to Cosby Campground where I would pick up the Low Gap Trail. Things were falling into place like they always seem to for me. I have been very fortunate.
I arrived early the next morning at Davenport Gap. On the way a Llama grazed at a nearby farm. There is a small two car parking area there and was lucky to get the remaining spot. A van pulled up shortly with ìA Walk in the Woodsî sign on it. A crew from Virginia piled out. They were hiking to Newfound Gap over 4 days. I talked a bit to Sam, the nice young woman driver who doubled as the office person at ìA Walk in the Woods.î I briefly mentioned my desire for a guide to hike the 27 miles in one day. She just said to e mail her with the plan and they would get back to me.
Sam pulled away and Curt from Standing Bear Hostel pulled up. Curt was an ex marine and was well experienced with hiking in the area. Paul and Jake a father son team from Michigan were also in the van. Paul and Jake were being shuttled up to Newfound Gap and were planning a four day backpack to Davenport. Curt said I would be sucking wind climbing up the Low Gap trail from Cosby. He was right. It was mid morning and there was some sort of community event happening at Cosby. Volunteers were trying to direct us to parking which we did not want. Curt showed me an access point to the Low Gap trail. I said goodbye and started the side trail hike to the AT.
It would be 2.9 miles and over 2,000 feet of climbing to get to the AT. Being alone I could go at my own pace and did not rush. I had all day to get to Davenport Gap. Two young guys passed me on the way up. The trail was easy except for the steepness. On the way there were a few spots where I could see the ridge in between the trees. It was a nice day.
I reached Low Gap and the AT junction. Don and Carol, about my age from Mississippi were there and we chatted a while. They were avid hikers and were hiking from Low Gap up to Mt Cammerer (another 2 miles) and back. They were struggling too going up the hills. Their pace was slower but steady. My pace is faster, but sometimes I cannot maintain it and have to stop to catch my breath.
I hiked with them for a while but soon went ahead and never saw them again. It was another 2 miles and 800 feet of climbing to the side trail to Mt Cammerer tower, which I did not hike up to. I felt good since I knew I now had only a 5 mile downhill hike to Davenport Gap and my car. The trail was a nice graded path and very easy. There were some great viewpoints on the way down although some clouds had rolled in. The visibility was still good. There was a beautifully built rock wall supporting the trail at one point.
On the way down I passed a grandma with her two granddaughters. I also met two guys that I had met at Davenport Gap. They had hiked four miles to that point, but had taken 4 Ω hours. It was quite a climb for them of over 3,000 feet in five miles. I was glad to be going down. I passed the side trail to the Davenport Gap Shelter and the grade and trail got even nicer. I reached Davenport Gap. Three young girls from Chicago were there. They had driven down for the weekend. I am not sure they had a plan and were having difficulty getting started.
For this week then, in three hiking days I clipped off 40 more AT miles. To do that, I hiked a total of 53 miles in three days.
I started the drive home and made it to Abingdon Virginia and the Super 8 there. Dinner was at KFC. I got home late on Sunday.
Bowe Bergdahl, a US Army soldier, was exchanged for five Guantanamo Bay detainees.
The following Tuesday, my mother, my sister and I took my Dadís ashes out to sea within visibility of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge where he had worked for the Army Corp of Engineers on a dredge in the harbor.
After a few days rest at home, I began to plan a June hike to fill in all the sections north of the Smoky Mountains (3) plus the long day to complete the Smokies. I contacted ìA Walk in the Woods.î Sam got back to me right away. I planned a trip for June that would culminate with the long 27 mile day from Newfound Gap down to Cosby. ìA Walk in the wood would provide a shuttles and a guide for the hike. It would not be cheap, but I figured I was a little out of the box.
I did my first trail maintenance with the Allentown Hiking Club on May 25. A young woman from the ATC was the expert who assisted us. From the Bake Oven Knob Parking Lot, we hiked to Bear Rocks and did the maintenance on the return. We pulled all the garlic mustard which was growing along the trail. Garlic Mustard is not native to North America and can be invasive and push out other native plants. The white flower made it easy to spot. We ended up with 10 or so large bags. It was important to bag it to prevent the seeds from spreading. It was fun.
Daniel Robert Heller was baptized on June 14.
The next day, Fatherís Day, I got up early and began the long drive down Interstate 81 with a goal of Erwin Tennessee and the friendly Super 8 motel there. I rolled in about 4PM.
I got up early on Monday morning and continued on to Hot Springs. I had about 29 AT miles to finish just north of there. I would complete those on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and stay in Hot Springs for those days. On Thursday, I would take a day off from hiking and move to Gatlinburg to prepare for my longest day ever of hiking on Friday.
I was early for my shuttle when I arrived at Bluff Mountain Outfitters in Hot Springs. Dan there was ready to go. There had been showers early but it seemed to be clearing. Dan said that he had retired 22 years earlier and had been shuttling AT hikers since. We dropped my car at Tanyard Gap only a few miles out of town. Dan drove me up to Allen Gap. I noted there was only a small two car parking lot there.
From Allen Gap, it would be a nine mile hike to Tanyard Gap. The trail itself was very well maintained although a little overgrown its spots. Even though I was climbing out of Allen Gap, it did not seem difficult. I met a thru hiker who said he was starting ìagainî in Hot Springs. An injury had forced him off the trail a month before. Separately two older section hikers came by. One was Dan and one was from Cleveland. Another younger thru hiker in a bright orange shirt came by, which seemed curious since it was not hunting season. It was very late in the year for north bound thru hikers who would have no chance of making it to Katadin this year.
At the road at Hurricane Gap I met a woman from Arkansas and an older gentleman from Florida. They seemed to be hiking together. The woman was calling her husband to let him know her progress from Tanyard Gap to Allen Gap. She struggled with her new I phone and I showed her how to turn it off when she asked.
There was a bit of a climb up Rich Mountain and I took the side trail up to the tower, hoping for some views down into the French Broad Valley. There would have been some from the top of the tower, but my fear of heights prevents that. Someone had used a weed wacker on the trail up Rich Mountain. Heading down to Tanyard Gap I began to hear a ruckus. As I approached it seemed to be a woman yelling at, almost abusively so, a teenager who appeared to be mentally challenged. When she saw me she stopped. The boy was Asian and the woman was not. I was not pleased but not sure what I could do about it.
I continued on and arrived at Tanyard Gap. With the very easy trail, I had done the 9 miles in under 4 hours, even stopping for lunch.
At Tanyard Gap, I could hear voices talking and met Bru and Robbie. I presumed that they were together but learned that they had actually just met. Bru had actually done the same hike as I did. Robbie had hiked up from Hot Springs.
As we spoke, I realized that Bru was the husband of Jennifer Pharr Davis, who I had heard speak at the ATC conference the previous July. Jennifer had dropped him off at Allen Gap and would pick him up in a few minutes. Jennifer of course had broken the overall record of the AT a few years earlier. Bru was working on a section hike of the AT. Earlier in the year he had hiked from the White Mountains down into Massachusetts, I believe. Jennifer arrived with their cute little girl, who I offered a coconut water too, with Momís permission. It was great to talk to them. They seemed interested in my book, they indicated they had known many people who wanted to hike the AT, but did not want to sleep out each night. I told them, that was my goal. Jennifer and Bru ran a hiking and guide service out of Asheville and Jennifer was scouting the Hot Springs area for places to stay and eat for future trips they might run.
Jennifer and Bru left. Robbie, who had just hiked up from Hot Springs, and was on a thru hike. Robbie was a young guy in his mid twenties, who had worked after college for a while in corporate finance, but was in a transition stage so decided to hike the trail. He said he had fallen in love with Hot Springs and was considering abandoning his thru hike and settling there. I wondered if the tough six mile climb from Hot Springs to Tanyard Gap had anything to do with it. He wanted a ride back to town which I was happy to provide, although sometimes I donít like to provide too much help, when someone is trying to quit a goal. I would see Robbie later that week in town and he seemed to be on his way to getting a job and buying a property near Hot Springs. I wonder if he did.
I checked into my motel in Hot Springs. The place was under renovation that went to midnight each evening, making sleep an issue. They were racing to complete some rooms before the weekend. My recently renovated room had a major plumbing issue. Oops.
The next morning, I thought I told Dan I would meet the shuttle driver at the store in town, but when she did not show, I drove out to my shuttle point at Devils Fork Gap. She was not there either. I tried calling Bluff Mountain but cell service was an issue. On my way back to town, she called me and we finally arranged to meet at Devils Fork Gap. I think this foul up was mine and was glad she hung tough. She was a cool young single girl, a free spirit type, who liked all sorts of outdoor recreation including kayaking with her inflatable kayak. She drove me up to Camp Creek Bald.
Camp Creek Bald was not as remote as it looked on the map. The road was now called Viking Mountain Road. My books said it was Upper Paint Creek Road. Camp Creek Bald was a large open area. There was a rough dirt road up to a fire tower 2/10ths of a mile away. The young girl (who never told me her name) showed me a sign post where there was a short trail to access the AT.
The AT would through some thick woods with rocky trail toward White Rock Cliffs. I got confused and never actually got there. Along the way, the AT ran parallel to Viking Mountain Road and there appeared to be several access points up there. Within a mile I reached the junction with the former AT, which was not a bad weather trail. The new AT ran across an exposed ridge which would not be safe in bad weather. The new trail was a nice experience although a little more difficult.
Once on the ridge there were great open views in all directions. The vegetation was thick scrub in nature and there were no tall trees. It was a beautiful day with blue sky and white clouds. The hike along the ridge followed the Tennessee/North Carolina border. There were mountains on the North Carolina side to the east making the view nicer than the populated valley on the Tennessee side. On the ridge, I could pick out Big Butt, a destination along my hike today. The visual distance was intimidating but I like to see where I am headed or where I have been on hikes. I could also clearly see the Fire Tower at Camp Creek Bald which was not a few miles back.
Once down off the ridge, the trail became very easy again. Overall todayís hike was a great mix of some technically difficult parts, rock stair cases or rock climbs, and very easy trail. At Jerry Cabin Shelter, there was a tent set up. A guitar was standing at the tent entrance but no one was around.
I passed through an open cleared field and could feel myself getting a little burned in the hot sun. I began the climb up to Big Butt. At Big Butt the view south back toward Camp Creek Bald were incredible. I could still see the Fire Tower which was now seven miles away. I headed down onto an old woods road and easy hiking. I reached the Shelton Grave with its three headstones. There seemed to be some dirt road access to the area. It was a little steep uncomfortable hiking down to the Flint Mountain Shelter.
At the Shelter, I met Dan who I had met the previous day. Dan was section hiking the AT. He had grown up in Jersey City where my daughter Bethany and her husband Kevin were now living. Hopi Fut, an Irishman was there too. Hopi Fut had been living in the US, thirteen of which had been working on a farm. He said it was his first vacation in 13 years. I am not sure how long he would be out. As I was preparing to leave, a thirty something teacher came in. She section hiked the AT each year and shared her experiences with her class. She was heading south and decided to continue on and camp later in the day. Dan Hopi Fut and the teacher were the only people I saw this day.
Dan mentioned an event the previous night at the Little Laurel Shelter. He was there with several others for the night including 2 young people who worked for ATC. Apparently they by accident tripped an emergency switch on their GPS locator. The rescue people from the area arrived at the shelter much to the surprise of everyone there.
I practically sprinted down the remaining three miles and arrived at Devils Fork Gap an hour later. Today was a great hike of about 13 miles.
The next day would be an easier day, a 7.7 mile hike from Camp Creek Bald back to Allen Gap. Dan from Bluff Mountain would shuttle me. I was lucky to get a one of the two spots at Allen Gap. Dan dropped me at the same spot as the previous day. I hiked up the dirt road to the Camp Creek Bald Fire Tower, but the tower area was locked up.
I headed back down the dirt road to the access trail, to the AT and headed south this time unlike the previous day when I went north from this spot. The trail wound around some muddy spots, but was generally easy and I made good time. It was downhill most of the way to Allen Gap. Separately I met some young section hikers, a couple, 2 girls and then a single girl. There would be no views this day. I stopped briefly for a snack at Little Laurel Shelter, the sight of the excitement two nights earlier. The shelter was deserted at this early hour.
I arrived at Allen Gap. A big bright red pickup was in the second spot next to me. The owners, a local couple, popped out of the woods. They had just finished a loop hike on the other side of the road. I headed back to town for lunch and my last night in Hot Springs.
I was not in a rush the next morning. I was taking a day off to rest for my marathon hike the next day. I had my last breakfast at the Smoky Mountain Diner. The contractor who was working until midnight in my adjoining motel room apologized for the late night work. He said he would talk to the owner about a credit. I did not expect one and was right.
By mid morning I was leaving Hot Springs and have not been back since. On the way to Gatlinburg, I scouted out the Cosby Campground. It was easy to find. I continued on to Gatlinburg. It was a little early to check into the Country Town and Suites Motel, so I packed away some carbohydrates at the pancake house across the street. The motel people who were originally from Pittsburgh Pennsylvania finally let me in a room. The motel logo had been fashioned after the Pittsburg Steelers logo. The motel had been newly purchased and was under renovation. My room was beautiful. I unloaded my car since I would be without it until late the next day. I made sure my cooler was well stocked for a celebration after the next dayís long hike.
I headed back to the Cosby Campground. I had arranged for a 2PM shuttle with Sam at ìA Walk in the Woodsî. The shuttle driver was Bob a former park service ranger. Bob had retired two years earlier after twenty eight years in public relations at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Before GSMNP Bob had spent time first in DC and then in Maine at Acadia.
Earlier in the year Bobís son in law, who is a trail runner and did ultra (100 mile) marathons, broke the record for hiking (running) the entire AT in GSMNP. He did the seventy one (71) miles in fourteen hours and fifty minutes. He started at Fontana Dam. Bob met him at Newfound Gap with some light food. He finished at Davenport Gap. He averaged 4.78 miles per hour. I was hoping to hike 2 mph the next day. I would not make that goal. I left my car in the hiker lot at the trailhead of the Low Gap trail. The sign said it was 2.9 miles to the AT.
That evening ,without a car, I had a little walk to the downtown area for dinner. I settled on an upstairs Mexican restaurant. I loaded up on carbs again. It was a warm and humid June day, so I took my time walking back to the motel on a full stomach. It was early but I settled in for rest for the next day. I slept little and was hydrating during the night.
I was up early to pack my pack and was waiting early for my 5AM pickup. My guide Charles was on time. Charles was not yet thirty and a tall guy in very good shape of course. He had been working for A Walk in the Woods for several years as a hiking guide. He considered what we were doing today a specialty hike, since it was little out of the box for what they normally did. We got to know each other a little on the forty five minute drive to Newfound Gap.
Charles grew up near Indianapolis, Indiana. He started college but always knew that he wanted a non- traditional career in the outdoors. He left college and for a year or so he took a series of courses to prepare him for work in the outdoors. He answered an ad and ended up coming east to the Great Smoky Mountains. His girlfriend and now wife must have loved him, since she willingly came along. Charles worked as guide during the season and the worked at a ski area during the winter. His wife worked at the ski area as well. Charles and his wife were renovating a rustic cabin in the area. He was a terrific young man. To me it was a little risky to be taking an old guy on a twenty seven mile hike. Charles said that this hike was normally a four day backpack.
We arrived at Newfound Gap just as the new day was breaking. It was June 20th so one of the longest days of the year. I would need it. So far the weather did not seem to be an issue. A young Asian couple pulled up next to us. They were looking to take some photos of the sunrise, but it did not seem Newfound Gap was oriented for a good view of a sunrise. It was a little cloudy as well.
We got our gear ready. I seemed to be carrying a larger and heavier pack than Charles. I had a lot of food and water. After using the restroom one last time, we started out on our 26.9 mile day. We would hike north on the AT for 24 miles to Low Gap and the Low Gap trailhead and then 2.9 miles down to the Cosby Campground and my car. The AT in this section is graded and never more than a 15% grade, my guidebook said. There were some deep gaps and high points and we would only lose 800 feet of elevation during the day to the Low Gap trailhead on the AT.
Charles started out at the easy pace he was used to for his guided hikes. I felt antsy, wanting to try to keep to a 2 mph pace. It turned out to be a good pace for me for the first 2.4 miles since we were climbing 955 feet. At the high point of the day we were about 6,000 feet of elevation. The views to the east along the way were good. The valleys were fog filled, but the sky was getting blue. There would be good views most of the day. As with most of the GSMNP, the AT followed the ridge on the border of Tennessee and North Carolina.
At about the four mile mark we reached Charlies Bunion. Trees were absent in this area of slate walls. We stopped for the first time and I ate my Subway sandwich which I shared with Charles. The views west into Tennessee were terrific. The fog was rolling in an out and I got a video with my camera showing it. It was 9AM when we left Charlies Bunion, so I considered us an hour behind schedule. Charles asked and I agreed we should pick up the pace. The views continued to be good as we criss-crossed the ridge to see both the Tennessee and North Carolina sides.
The morning went fast as we bumped along, up and down the peaks and into the valleys. We were making better time. It was about 2:30 when we rolled into the Tri County Knob Shelter at the 15.6 mile mark. It was our planned water stop and I felt good about being past our half way point. The shelter had about 8 thru and section hikers who had settled in for the day. Most were women. It seemed early to be off the trail, but hikers need reservations for these shelters. The weather seemed to be turning too. There was a lot of banter going on between the young men and women. Charles got us water to refill our camelbacks and bottles, though I was not out yet. After a snack we headed out.
The weather got a little better as we started out assault of Old Black which was out high point of the day at 6,370 feet. We stopped for a break on the way down from Old Black at an emergency helicopter landing area. It was nothing more than an open grassy area with a few buried narrow concrete pads. I was fading and beginning to wish for a helicopter exit but did ok since we were losing elevation fast down 1500 feet to Camel Gap. The graded trail was easy except for the loose rocks.
On the descent, dark ominous clouds started to move in and we could hear thunder in the distance. We put our raingear on at Camel Gap. Soon it started to pour. Thunder cracked around us for a brief time. We were climbing again and I hit a wall. It was only 500 feet of elevation gain over 2 miles to Cosby Knob, but I really struggled. I could not keep up with Charles. I would hike 50 yards and have to stop to catch my breath. Charles would wait, but when I finally caught up to him, I was out of breath again. It was raining most of this time and I was sweating in my rain suit. It could have taken me almost 2 hours to climb the two miles which should not have been that difficult. I began drinking and eating and sucking down Emergen-C, trying to recover.
I was very glad to reach Cosby Knob and as soon as we started the descent, I had no difficulties with my breath. I was still exhausted. We heard voices at the Cosby Knob shelter, but continued on to Low Gap and our exit point. I did not celebrate too early, but had now finished the AT in the Smokies. It was 7:30PM. It had stopped raining so we could put away our raingear.
I had hiked up the Low Gap trail the month before so knew we were down all the way to the Campground. I was fine on the descent. The sunlight was fading and there was an instant of a beautiful scene where the last of the sunlight caught the rain filled leaves making it look like a forest of lights. We marveled at the sight. As we approached the campground we took a side trail to get out of the woods and onto a paved road, just as darkness fell. It was 15 minute walk to my car which we got to right at 9PM. Along the way, cars, trucks and campers were rolling in for the weekend. Charles said I wore him out. I was exhausted.
We celebrated briefly with a few high fives and a beer and I drove him back to the office of A Walk in the Woods. We called our wives once we had cell phone service.
I drove to Gatlinburg, stopped at McDís for a burger and an ice cream, took and shower and collapsed into bed. I drove home the next day.
For May and June, I logged 93 AT miles in seven hiking days. With side trails it was 109 miles. I had now completed all AT Sections in the south down to Albert Mountain and was within 101 miles of completing the South. It was good progress.
